Clichy: Gunners still in hunt March 26 2008
Gael Clichy believes Arsenal can still realistically challenge for Premier League honours this season.
The French full-back insists the Gunners have the quality to bounce back from their recent five-match winless streak which culminated in a 2-1 loss to Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.
The defeat meant that the Blues leapfrogged Arsene Wenger's charges to second in the standings, which leaves the north Londoners six points adrift of Manchester United at the summit.
But 22-year-old Clichy is confident that his team-mates can get their title chase back on track.
"We may have lost against Chelsea but we played well," he said.
"The manager is still confident.
"At the moment, we are alongside Chelsea in the battle to catch Manchester United. They are not dropping many points at the moment but there is still a long way to go.
"Honestly, I think Arsenal have the quality to come back from this. We just have to work hard.
"We haven't had a lot of luck in the last few matches. We had our chances (against Chelsea) but we didn't do what we had to win."
Meanwhile, Clichy is hoping his performance for France A against Mali prompts senior national team coach Raymond Domenech to include him in Les Bleus' Euro 2008 squad.
He said: "Personally, I didn't think it went too bad for me (against Mali). It was a pleasure to play here.
"I am still progressing as a player, and there are still some things to learn on my part, but I'll continue to work hard.
"We will only learn afterwards if the match here made a difference.
"If I made my mark here, all the better. But I will continue to work hard and give my maximum to give myself a chance of making the squad."